List Price: $349.99
Sale Price: $199.99
Today's Bonus: 43% Off
- Agathis body with gloss polyurethane finish
- C-shape maple neck with 9.5 in radius, rosewood fingerboard and 22 medium jumbo frets
- 3 Single-Coil Pickups
- Synchronous Tremolo Bridge, Master volume w/ 2 tone controls and 5 position pickup selector switch
- Pack includes, Squier SP-10 Guitar Amplifier,Guitar Stand,Instructional DVD,Cable,Electronic Tuner,Gig Bag,Guitar Strap and Pick Sampler
- Body Shape: Stratocaster
- Maple Neck
- Dot Position Inlays
- Synchronous Tremolo Bridge
- 22 Frets
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Note: this review is for the whole "kit", not just the guitar or the amp. Also, it pertains to all 3 colors; I don't know why they have them as separate packages. (Maybe the sunburst one has better sustain? Ummm...right. Mine is black, if it matters.)I noticed people are not reviewing this on Amazon and frankly, that's a shame! They (guitar/amp) are a fabulous instrument. So we're clear, this is a budget and/or noob package but I say that in no way to impugn its quality. It's significantly ahead of any 'Targ-mart' special you can get for only a bit less; then again I got mine on Labor Day special for 1/2 price--awesome!
Let's get "the missing star" stuff out of the way first:
The tone knobs for neck/middle are more like switches. 0-2 is "dark" and 3-10 is bright. There's not much in between.
The "tremolo" bar (classic misnomer) and bridge are low-budget so this is upgrade territory. For me, I'm not much into the whammy, so it's moot.
Of the 5 pickup settings, only the bridge-alone one sounds truly unique. However, this is not a biggee to me as it seems fairly common. The pickups are not high-end (another upgrade potential) but if you're a beginner or you're playing for fun, in a church band or anything where $ is not on the table these p'uppies are surprisingly good sounding!
So, back to our 4-star combo features. Though it's a Chinese-made Squier it's still a Fender and they have to maintain standards. The fretboard/neck feels good and is solid and the tuning knobs get the job done; mine stays in tune reasonably well. The guitar as a whole looks like a Strat--not much difference from 5 feet away so if you like the Strat look, this one will be pleasing. The little 10-watt Squier amp has nothing to be ashamed of! It's very simple and it complements the axe quite well; in fact I like its sound better than my Line 6 Spider III 15W amp. I've even seen it at pawn shops for $50 so people must realize that it's pretty impressive for its category. Finally, the quartz tuner works fine but there are better ones out there to be sure.
To put everything, especially quality, in perspective, I like to ask, "if you drug Eric Clapton into trading his million-dollar-baby for this model and, after he sobers up you both play them, who sounds better?"
So, thumbs up for this combo. Professional musicians may not want the guitar unless they want to use it for a "project" and do some surgery to turn it into a great player. But for younger/newer and/or cash-strapped folk, you'd do well to own one. Mine's a keeper!I BOUGHT THIS FOR MY GRANDSON WHO RECENTLY STARTED PLAYING GUITAR. I HAVE PLAYED FOR OVER 60 YEARS AND PLAY JAZZ AND POP. I HAVE A STANDARD JAZZ RIG INCLUDING A EPIPHONE ARCHTOP, POLYTONE AMP AND KENT ARMSTRONG FLOATING PICKUP.
THIS GUITAR IS SIMPLY GREAT AND YOU GET THE WHOLE PACKAGE. IT PLAYS EASY, HAS A 5 POSITION PICKUP SELECTOR, IS VERY WELL MADE IN CONSTRUCTION AND APPEARANCE. IN THE NECK PICKUP POSITION, THE GUITAR HAS A SWEET AND ROUND JAZZ SOUND WHICH REALLY SURPRISED ME. THE OTHER SELECTOR SWITCHES RUN THE RANGE FROM ROCK TO ALL THE OTHER SOUNDS THE KIDS JUST LOVE. SO MY GRANDSON HAS THE OPTION OF PLAYING DIFFERENT STYLES AND SOUNDS. OF COURSE, I HOPE HE GRAVITATES TO JAZZ.
THE ROSEWOOD FRETBOARD IS VERY EASY TO PLAY AND THE GUITAR IS STRUNG WITH FENDER LIGHT GAUGE STRINGS WHICH ENHANCES PLAYABILITY ESPECIALLY FOR A YOUNGSTER STARTING OUT,AND,THERE IS NO DEGRADATION OF TONE. AGAIN, I WAS VERY SURPRISED.
THE AMP IS A VERY NICE PRACTICE AMP AND PRODUCES A LOVELY SOUND.
THIS PACKAGE EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS AND I AM SO HAPPY THAT I WAS ABLE TO GET THIS FOR MY GRANDSON.
I MIGHT JUST BUY ONE FOR GRANDPA!!I am new to the guitar but not a total beginner in music and was thrilled all that you get in the package. Both the guitar and amp are more than adequate as a practice rig for a beginner. I am impressed that the hardware to adjust the truss and string action were included. The guitar has a beautiful sunburst finish with reddish brown pickguard. Everything was functional and easy to use, although I will say the strap is a little loose and the stand is a little light, but what more can you expect for $149. The small amp gets pretty buzzy and noisy around 7-8, but if you keep the volume below blasting, the sound quality is good enough.
If you're doing performances, I would definitely upgrade the strap, tuners, stand and amp, but for just starting out, this package is more than adequate.Overall I think this is a good starter kit.
the body seems to be great, the neck and frets are good; the only bad part is the head, it's rough and could have been finished way better, not well sanded , rough spots around the edge and not much finish no gloss to it at all.
seems to tune up ok and play ok, the only buzz i hear so far is my novice fingering.
the electronic tuner had no real instructions to speak of so i found a you-tube video that told me what to do.
the dvd is a cut down version and imho is missing what the new user needs the most HOW TO SETUP and HOW TO TUNE!
the "Pick Sampler" well really they just put in 3 medium picks that were only different in color, it would have been better if they gave us different ones like hard, medium or whatever...
the amp seems like a good first amp.
like i said this seems fair as a starter.
The Good: the Strat is very playable. I've compared this to some First Act guitars in the same price range and the Strat, by far, is much more playable. It's far more consistent along the fret board and the pickups offer better tone than other budget guitars. The amp has some built in distortion that can really start to fuzz when you turn it up, which makes for some fun jam sessions for a new guitarist. The Strat has good balance and seems to be weighted correctly and it isn't too heavy for being a solid body (much lighter than a Les Paul type).
The Bad: I found this Strat to be VERY sensitive to temperature changes. I've had to adjust the neck two or three times during the winter alone. Also, I could never really get the neck straight and the action low enough without some kind of fret buzz. Maybe this is because of the way I like it setup or maybe it's the quality of a Chinese made Strat. The pickups are kinda crappy (yet better than a First Act) and the tremolo/bridge is somewhat suspect. Expect some crackle as you switch through the pickups. The amp is only a 10w amp and doesn't have much in the way of GOOD tone. It'll be the first thing you want to upgrade.
The Ugly: the gig bag. Seriously, it's like a guitar shaped body bag. I'd rather not get one in the package if it meant lowering the price by a couple bucks. I wouldn't be caught dead carrying my guitar in this bag, but then again it's only a Chinese Squire Strat so it's not like I REALLY need to protect my "investment" too much I guess.
The Bottom line: just getting into playing the guitar? Short on cash but have plenty of desire to play? Then this is for you, but just know that if you stick with it you'll be upgrading/replacing in about two years. Getting back into playing after a few years of not playing at all (my situation)? Look elsewhere and spend the money on a better guitar because you'll "outgrow" this one quickly. This is a good buy, don't get me wrong, but anyone with average skills and experience will want something more. I'd buy this over anything in Target or Wal-Mart. But, I'd rather go buy a 15w Line 6 Spider off Craigslist and find a used Fender Strat and cut my teeth that way if I had to do it all over again.
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